Earlier today, Opposition party MPs gathered at Mahatma Gandhi's statue outside Parliament and marched together after linking their arms to form a human chain.

Earlier today, Opposition party MPs gathered at Mahatma Gandhi’s statue outside Parliament and marched together after linking their arms to form a human chain. (file photo)

Opposition parties Wednesday called for a countrywide protest on November 28 against the cash crunch faced by the public. Earlier in the morning, Opposition party MPs gathered at Mahatma Gandhi’s statue outside Parliament and marched together after linking their arms to form a human chain. Day five of the Lok Sabha was again a washout with the Opposition refusing to let the House function. The demand for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene in the debate over demonetisation still remains high on Opposition agenda. Calling demonetisation the country’s biggest impromptu financial experiment, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi said his party wants the debate to be conducted under adjournment motion, which effectively suspends House business. “Congress party wants the debate under adjournment motion, question is are we being allowed to speak?” he said.

He claimed that the party MPs were not being allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha. “Speaker refusing to give us debate; Question is not whether PM sits there, question is-are we being allowed to speak?We aren’t,” Rahul said.

Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu countered the charge saying that it was instead the Opposition who was not allowing discussion in the House. “Opposition is not allowing discussion in the house by creating uproar. On the contrary, they are putting blame on government,” Naidu said. Blaming the Oppositon for overlooking the “public’s mood”, Naidu added that poor people want demonetisation to be a success and see Prime Minister Narendra Modi as their “messiah”.

Speaking to reporters outside Parliament, BSP supremo Mayawati urged President Pranab Mukherjee to summon PM Modi and ask him to resolve the problems faced by public. “I urge President to summon PM and ask him to take measures to solve the problems faced by people post demonetisation move,” she said.

She also questioned the continued absence of PM Modi from the Parliament. “I want to ask PM why is he so afraid when he feels that he had done good work (Main poochna chahti hoon PM se ki agar unhone itna acha kaam kiya hai to vo ghabra kyu rahe hain?),” Mayawati said.